Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour: when will the government put people before money?

Your article, “Hong Kong harbours ambitions for Central waterfront” (May 14), draws timely public attention to the importance of our 73km of harbourfront and the threat of its being ruined by indiscriminate and insensitive development, both by the government and private interests.

On Hong Kong Island, the most sensitive part of the Central harbourfront has been changed from a public promenade to a PLA military site as a naval base. On the most visible and valuable site outside the Four Seasons Hotel now stands an ugly government ventilation building which could have been located elsewhere.

These are the heights of folly. The government promises to give Hong Kong a “world-class harbourfront” and yet does the exact opposite.

For 15 years, our society has been advocating a “Harbour Authority” to look after the harbour and the harbourfront. The government had responded five years ago with a public consultation, which was undertaken by the previous administration and which showed overwhelming support from the Hong Kong people for such a proposal.